This introductory course will provide an outline of major events and themes inIndian history, from the Mughal Empire in the 16th century to the re-emergenceof India as a global player in the 21st century. The course will discuss thefollowing themes: society and economy in Mughal India; global trade betweenIndia and the West in the 17th century; the rise of the English East IndiaCompany's control over Indian subcontinent in the 18th century; its emergenceand transformation of India into a colonial economy; social and religiousreform movements in the 19th century; the emergence of elite and popularanti-colonial nationalisms; independence and the partition of thesubcontinent; the emergence of the world's largest democracy; the making of anIndian middle class; and the nuclearization of South Asia.